When soft tissue tears away from bone, reattachment becomes necessary. Various fixation devices, including sutures, screws, staples, wedges, and plugs have been used in the past to secure soft tissue to bone. More recently, various types of suture strands have been developed.
Suture strength is an important consideration in any surgical suture material. One of the strongest materials currently formed into elongated strands is an ultrahigh molecular long chain weight polyethylene, typically used for fishing line and the like, which is sold under the trade names DYNEEMA or SPECTRA.
Improved suture/needle constructs and methods of threading suture through tissue, or around tissue, with maximum suture fixation strength, as well as methods of securing tissue to tissue that allow for accelerated tissue healing are needed.